Lesson That Taught Love, page 16
“Yeah well, I took a gamble with my eyes closed to get you to go out with me. Sounds to me like an equal exchange.” He laughed.
“Your choice, by the way. I didn't set those terms. You did. Looking back at it now, I think the blindfold was just a ploy to let me know just how good you were. “
“Like I said, only four things I know for sure I'm good at. This date is the first step of many to give you insight on that last one." Though he was lost for my vision, I imagined him wearing an ear to ear grin.
After another long thirty-five more minutes on the road (and I only know because he told me so) he parked and helped me out the car as he instructed me to watch my step every few seconds. Other than that, he was quiet fueling the worry brewing up inside me of not knowing what was in store for me once I took this scarf from my eyes. “You’ve been awfully quiet back there. Give me a little line or two to ease my nerves.”
“I’m only quiet because I’m trying not to startle my surprise.” He answered back in a hushed voice. He led me through what sounded like a waist-high wooden gate. He shut the door behind us and with his hands on my hips pushed me forward a few feet before we came to a timely halt.
“Stay right here, okay?” And like that, it felt like I was standing on one of those diving boards waiting to be pushed off into the water. When you couldn’t see anything, it was hard recognizing places that felt familiar to you from the smell alone. If I didn’t know any better, from the occasional shift in the ground under my feet, I’d take my guess and say we were on a farm.
“Easy now, easy. It’s just me.” Kit said at a distance as the sound of one’s snorting echoed throughout the open space. The clopping of multiple steps edged closer towards me as a short round of whinnies followed seconds behind. “Please don’t scream, alright?” he asked of me, guiding my hand to a surface not only smooth and warm but very much alive.
“Alright. Time to uncover those eyes. And don’t get jumpy, this one’s the type to feed off your emotions.” Once he loosened the blindfold and handed me what resembled a long rope, my mouth flew open at the sight of a beautiful chestnut brown stallion just as vigorous and healthy as any prize winning horse at a county fair. Back in Prestonburg, he’d probed me a good ten minutes about my love for horses. Who knew he was listening and planning this from that very day?
“Whoa,” I said with little to no thought process. “He’s stunning.”
“He, ” he started, gesturing for me to pull at the rope to lead it outside to the wide open green pasture. “Is actually a she and goes by the name of Music Note.” He added with a wink that forced a smile out of me.
“I have to ask. Why Music Note?” Not that it wasn’t a cute name or anything. But I’m sure it had some story attached.
What I gathered from his explanation was that his cousin, like him, was a huge fan of music and that the farm belonged to his father’s brother before willing it to his son, who looked after it now. Kit’s first lesson of the night was filling me in on a few ways to help me bond with her. Said it’d be easier to ride her if she liked me.
“I’m so scared that she’s not going to like me.” He circled the mare, grabbing a brush on her side to show me how she liked to be pampered.
“Well I like you, and I don’t know, I’m very persuasive.”
“I thought you just kind of liked me?” I teased with a smile as I remembered the first time he told me so when we were standing outside my house that late evening.
“Yea, well now it’s past kinda.
“Are you really going to let me ride her? I don’t need to be wearing a helmet or special boots, nothing like that? I’m not trying to fall off.” He laughed, but it was more of a teasing laugh, one that came with reassurance and an explanation. As long as I’d lived in the deep corner of South Eastern Kentucky, I thought I’d go my whole life without ever riding a horse. Other than school, it was always on my bucket list to do so.
“You won’t be riding alone; I’ll be there with you. Music Note here is a wild one, but she rides like the wind. Fun for a first timer. My uncle, man, when he was with us, he taught me how to deal with just about any horse. When I first met this one she was a handful. Now she can’t get enough of me.” He joked.
“Seemed like you learned a lot from your uncles.” Reminding myself that it was his skills in handiwork that damn near got me my whole house fixed. Haven’t had an issue since.
“Yea, well, it’s not like my father was around for any of that stuff. The only time he noticed me was when I enlisted.” I learned that his dad was a man of the military, through and through. Loved his country and didn’t mind dedicating his whole life to it one way or another.
“Other times I remember doing stuff with him was when he taught me how to hunt and shoot. Pretty useful if you ask me, seeing as how it won me this time with you finally.” The horse neighed in his direction, further insinuating that even she wasn’t falling his manure. I was, though. She was alone on that one.
“The way we were headed, it was going to happen eventually. All you did really, was speed up the timeline.” I teased. But I was appreciative of his father and his “so-called” lessons. I enjoyed the time I got to spend bonding with Ole Music Note here and judging by the way she eased into my petting; she liked the extra attention of four hands versus the regular two. Not to mention how cute Lucky looked in his little cowboy hat. I used to hate those country ass hats on boys I grew up with around here, but over time I learned to appreciate everything that made our boys special. Notably Kit…Especially Kit.
“Okay now, that’s enough of babying her for one day. Let’s get you on this horse and show you what you’ve been missing your whole life. You ain’t experienced real riding until you’ve ridden one of these babies but wait a minute…” He took off his hat and gestured for me to lean in, then with gentle adjustment placed it on top of my twisted plaits.
“There. Now you’re perfect.”
You’d be surprised how many things could change your outlook on life after you’ve read a good book. I’d spent years indulging my love for reading with the Bernstein Bears as a child, upgrading to Toni Morrison as a teenager. But my taste expanded the most after I went away to college. Genres I normally proceeded with caution, now caught my interest. As a grown woman, I didn’t even leave the house without at least two books in my purse—different genres of course, just in case I ever got a free minute on a break, or had time to kill.
Who would’ve guessed my quirky addiction would’ve come in handy tonight; Kit had dressed his entire truck into a makeshift bed, so we could talk and cuddle underneath the stars. When he noticed the weight of my purse, he couldn’t help but wonder what was weighing such a small bag down. I gleamed with pride when upon discovering they were books, he’d wanted to know what they were about, and even asked if I could read one to him.
Just from my interaction with him, I knew neither would interest him more than the other, but I’m sure his choose was based on my reaction to it, and not something he’d genuinely love to read himself. Though my interest in reading hadn’t crossed over, the fact he tried so hard not to denounce it was adorable, even when he'd fall asleep between chapters.
“Kit, are you falling asleep?” I flicked the side of his nose with the tip of my index finger. I guess his exhaustion wasn’t completely his fault; he was too damn comfortable and it was well past midnight.
“No,” he lied. Do you want to know how I knew it was a lie? Because if I would’ve been stretched out the way he was now, I would’ve been done for myself. That’s how comfortable the truck had been set up to be.
“You lie.” I teased, soon afterward. Like a true Kentucky man, whenever he defended himself, he always spoke with his hands to distract you from why you were mad at him.
“No, I swear. It’s just your voice—”
“My voice?”
“You know you got one of them soothing voices,” He replied in a sing-song way. “The kind that makes you want to curl up next to your woman and fall asleep? You know what I’m talking about,” He smiled.
“I ain’t never heard of that.”
“Well, even if you haven’t, it’s still your fault I’m falling asleep. You can’t expect me to stay awake to a farfetched story about a kid going to wizardry school. I’ll be the first to admit; all that speculative fiction don’t hold my interest too much. But I gave it a chance on the count that you spoke so highly of it.” He later admitted and explained how different it sounded over the phone, versus in person.
He did like one particular thing about the story, though. Ron Weasley. It didn't take much to figure out why.
“Besides, now that I got you to myself,” he said, as he pulled me closer to him. “I’d rather hear you talk about you.”
The subject of me always felt so invasive; like he was trying to ask the right things to get the wrong answer. “Why this sudden interest in me?” I asked with flirtatious suspicion.
“I don’t know.” His shoulders slumped in defeat. “I want to know what your other interests are. What you’re passionate about. If you haven’t noticed, this is the first date I’ve ever been on.”
Shooting him a knowing glance, he held out his hands in front of him, defensive for the second time tonight. “I wish I was lying. I’m not exactly proud admitting I’ve never been good at making an effort. I’ve spent most my time with women, but officially?”
“Let me guess. They all ended up back at your place, and wasn’t much talking going on?”
If Kit were trying to hide his lack of composure, the scarlet flush spreading across his cheeks wasn’t helping. “See, you ain’t even have to say it like that.” He folded in his long legs into a lotus position, rubbing his palms across his thighs.
“But tonight is about starting over for me, and of all the mistakes I’ve made, you’ve never been one of them. So I think it’s fitting that I’d want to know more about the only person I’ve never lied to, who I liked, and who didn’t think I was bad to look at.” He said, flashing a knowing grin.
“I want to know everything about you.” As his smile softened, and the pressure to answer suddenly felt like a chore.
“I keep telling you, Kit. There ain’t much to know—”
“Beck, there’s always gonna be stuff about you worth knowing. Even if you don’t think it’s important.”
I looked away to gather my thoughts, but nothing came to mind when I forced it. “Where do I start?”
“How about starting with the things I don’t know about you?”
There was a lot Kit didn’t know, or needed to know. It didn’t mean I didn’t want to tell him anything; I just wasn’t comfortable sharing everything. “What do you want to know? You keep asking what don’t you know about me, but how am I supposed to answer when I don’t have a clue of what you don’t know?”
Kit’s cupid bow shaped lips pursed to the side of his mouth, as he put a lot of consideration on what he planned to ask next. “What’s your favorite tv show?” He asked in a jilted hesitation that suggested he was making the questions up as he went.
“Law and Order,” I replied, hoping all the questions would be that easy to answer.
“See, I didn’t know that about you.” As an innocent smile formed across his face, and he reached out to caress my knee. The low sound of rustling leaves was a nice distraction from questions and added a comfortable ambiance to the night.
“Name something you couldn’t live without when you were eleven.”
What a random question. My brows furrowed at the sound of it. “Why eleven?”
His green eyes glowed brighter than normal, as they widened in awe. “I don’t know; it was the first number that popped into my head.”
I brushed it off, as it was a genuine question, so the least it deserved was a valid answer. I had to think back a long time; for me, that was twenty years ago. Man how the time flew! “Gosh, let’s see…eleven? Hmmm…”
The warm memory brought a smile to my face. How could I forget such a thing? “Okay, I got it.” I pointed to no one in particular.
“When I was eleven, I used to love these stuffed animals that could roll into balls. I reckon it was from the 80’s, a cartoon or something. But I never watched the show; I just liked the toys.” I rambled on until I caught myself. “Anyway, there was a big, bright, fat one in particular named Puzzle. He was orange, with a green and blue ball on a string for his tail.” If I remembered correctly, they were called Popples, on the count they made that sound when they popped out their balls from the television show. I might even still have that damn thing in my basement, or from boxes in my old room. But I doubted he wanted the boring details, so I kept it at that.
“Lucky, you sure you even want to hear about all this?” When I noticed Kit resting his head on his forearm as if he was a child being entertained by the television after staying home from school.
“Beck, when are you going to learn that anything that makes you smile is a win-win for me?” He flirted.
I rolled my eyes in an exaggerated gesture. “I guess I’ll have to accept that answer.” Kit pursed his lips in a smirk, as he relaxed into his position. “But now you have to let me ask something about you.”
I curled my legs underneath my dress, as he gestured with his hands for me to ask away. “I’ve been curious about this for a while, but it’s never a good time to ask.” I suddenly felt sheepish for even thinking it.
“About how much were you able to bench press during your Army training, if you didn’t mind me asking.”
Kit’s body posture loosened, as he brought his hand to his chin to rub away his confusion. “Wow. That was a long time ago. I don’t even know if I remember that far back. You know my memory ain’t good for shit.” Kit mentioned a few times his injuries during his time served affected his memory sometimes, but I’d never noticed because he always seemed to recall most things I’d asked.
“But I know what I press now ain’t half as much as I used to. If I could give a guess, maybe four-hundred, four-hundred fifty?”
“I’m guessing that’s impressive bench press-wise?” I played dumb.
“I’ll just put it this way. That’s like four of you.”
Heh, in my dreams. “First of all Kit, I’ll have you know I’m far from 100 lbs. A lady normally doesn’t reveal her weight, but since we're friends and I ain’t got anything to hide, it’s more like 140-150.”
“My mistake then,” he swatted his hand to mimic me. “More like two and a half of you. And for the record, one of you is nothing. If anything, I could do that in my sleep.”
A part of me had to see it for myself to believe it. Not that I doubted him—especially considering his physique. Kit was muscular, but more in a lean way, like a true country boy. They mainly worked with their hands, so he was probably stronger than he looked, but since the subject was up for discussion, it didn’t hurt to make a little wager. Betting was why we were here in the first place, after all.
“I bet you couldn’t even bench press me.” I challenged. Kit curled his lips in that sure way that could only be a warning he was about to say something arrogant—or worse, something that turned me on.
I had to push down the part of me that liked that about him, so I wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of seeing me smile. “Beck, this whole betting thing has yet to work in your favor.”
“So you’re admitting you can’t, then?”
Kit ran his tongue along the bottom row of his teeth as if he knew I was trying to get a reaction out of him. “Just tell me what I win if I do.”
“Aren’t we confident?” I hit him across the shoulder closest to me.
“You should know by now that anything when it comes to you makes me real ambitious. If you just wanna see me lift you, just so say. To save yourself the trouble.” He ended, flashing an arrogant smile.
“Kit, I ain’t never met a man so full of himself.” As I brought me hands to my waist, trying to pretend there wasn’t some truth to his statement.
All he did was flash those pearly whites, and gesture for me to scoot closer to him, as he was just as curious as I was to see if he could do so. He instructed me to position myself so I was vertical across his chest so that he could lift me like a bench press.
“Watch your hands now,” I teased, as it elicited a breathy laugh from Kit.
“Listen, I’ve got to grip my hands on something, and I’d rather it be a part of you that's easier to grip, not this big ole thing sitting in the back of you.” he laughed, reaching underneath the inside of my knee, and middle of my back.
“Oh shut up, my butt isn’t that big.”
“Tell that to your dresses little missy. Or better yet, ignore what I just said. Otherwise, you might stop wearing those sexy dresses that stop just at your upper thigh because of that big ole thing.”
Kit laughed when an icy glare was all I could manage to combat his comment. Then he asked if I could fold my arms in across my chest, and stay as erect as possible. He struggled to find a grip that didn’t dig into a part of my skin that made me uncomfortable, but once he traveled his ticklish fingers around, he managed to push my weight parallel to his.
A light scream escaped the back of my throat, at having no warning, and the fear he’d drop me. But the more pushups he performed, the faster he went through them. “Okay, okay! I believe you!” I shrieked in a nervous laugh.
“Oh, I’m just getting started.” He bragged and went on to perform an extra two sets. I wasn’t sure how many that had been because I lost my count after twenty.
The last pushup came down in a slow strain, so I could tell his arms were giving out. The experience was overwhelming, but at least I could cross being bench pressed off my bucket list. Once I was safe on the back of the truck, I crawled over to him, stretched out and resting my chin in my hand.
“I have to admit; I’m a little impressed.”
